USDA-ARS Maize Breeding and Genetics at NCSU Presents:

The Hall of Fame

The Hall of Fame -

 

Former students and employees and their last known whereabouts

 

Inducted 2008

 

Marco Oropeza-Rosas (post-doc) - Marco now works as a cotton breeder for Monsanto in Scott, Mississippi, where he also serves as the director of the Institute for Southern United States English As A Second Language.

 

Jesus Garcia-Zavala (Ph.D. student) - Now working at the Colegio de Postgraduados in Texcoco, Mexico.

 

Candace Gatlin (undergrad assistant) - after her too-brief appearance on Team Corn, Candace is graduating and looking for biology jobs in the big cities of the South.

 

Heather Hunt (undergrad assistant) - Heather is starting grad school in environmental sciences at Pennsylvania State University.

 

Inducted 2007

 

Stella Salvo (technician) - multiple choice. Stella (A) directs a top secret government corn breeding program from an undisclosed bunker, (B) was taken back to the Mothership, or (C) works as drumstick tech for Susie Ibarra.

 

George Van Esbroeck (temporary assistant) - George now works with the NCSU small grains breeding program, making wheat doubled haploids.

 

Scott Reed (undergrad assistant) - Scott decided that, if he is to ever graduate from college, he needs to stop working 50 hours per week with Team Corn. Boo hoo for us. He now is studying full time at East Carolina U.

 

Yan Zhang (undergrad assistant) - Yan, what happened to you? We want you back! Did you go back to Shanghai or are you studying fashion design or some such thing in New York?

 

Inducted 2006

 

Luciana Carlini-Garcia (post-doc) - Dr. Luciana returned to Brazil, where she is now a soybean breeder with Instituto Agronomico de Campinas.

 

Myles Bohon (undergrad assistant) - Myles returned to his books after summer, 2006.  He is the smartest guy we know (Parks Scholar). He is going to grad school in Engineering at NCSU.

 

MC Parker (undergrad assistant) - MC started college after summer, 2006, at the University of North Carolina—Wilmington.  Don’t forget to go to class, MC!

 

David Rhyne (USDA Biological Science Technician) - After 16+ years working in the USDA maize DNA marker lab in the Dept. of Crop Science at NCSU, David has moved to the USDA maize pathology genetics lab at NCSU headed by Dr. Peter Balint-Kurti.  Thus, still in the family.

 

Leilani Robertson-Hoyt (grad student) - graduated, March, 2006 with Ph.D. in Crop Science and Plant Pathology.  Leilani moved to Madison, WI and works for Pioneer Hi-Bred in Janesville, WI.

 

Barry Ingle (lab and field assistant) - Barry moved to Austin, TX to pursue his music career.  You can catch his music online.  We can say we knew him before he was famous!

 

Andrew Hunt (undergrad assistant) - graduated May, 2006 with B.S. in Crop Science and Botany.  Andrew got his M.S. in cotton physiology at NCSU and is now going to Penn State U. for  a Ph.D.

 

Inducted 2005

 

Tricia Bair (undergrad assistant) —graduated August, 2005, with BS in Life Sciences.  Now Trish works for Syngenta, in the Research Triangle Park, NC, enjoying that fancy espresso machine of theirs!

 

Jennifer Tarter (grad student) — graduated, April, 2005 with Ph.D. in Crop Science.  Currently, Maize Inbred Discovery Breeder, Pioneer Hi-Bred, Algona, IA.

 

Inducted 2004

 

Brooke Peterson (technician) —retired from USDA, September, 2004. Now full-time mom to young Grant and Sarah.

 

Terry Flint (undergrad assistant) —returned to St. Cloud State University, August 2004 after two successful consecutive seasons on the NC corn pollinating circuit. Now some kind of engineer.

 

Steve Szalma (postdoc) – works for Pioneer Hi-Bred, Inc. as a corn breeder, stationed in Willmar, MN.  Probably ice fishing when not working!

 

Inducted 2003

 

Arturo Garcia (data management specialist) - boo-hoo, Arturo left and we are somewhat helpless, computer-wise, without him.  He created our field data collection software, corntracker, which is awesome.  Now he is the IT specialist at USDA-ARS in Columbia, MO.

 

Kim Soules (undergrad assistant) -graduated from NCSU in May, 2003, pollinated and harvested until September, 2003. Current whereabouts: unknown.  A big shout out to Lil Kim!

 

Jill Weibel (undergrad assistant) -graduated from NCSU in May, 2003, pollinated until August, 2003.  Worked as public school teacher in Mecklenberg County, NC.

 

Inducted 2002

 

Brian Hostert (grad student) —graduated from NCSU in May, 2002 with MS in Crop Science.  Now works for Monsanto in Woodland, CA.

 

Inducted 2000

 

Sara Helland (grad student) —graduated from Iowa State U. in May, 2000 with MS in Genetics.  Now works for Pioneer Hi-Bred in Johnston, IA and is a Ph.D. candidate at ISU.

 

Cuauhtemoc Cervantes-Martinez (grad student) —graduated from Iowa State U. in February, 2000 with Ph.D. in Plant Breeding.  Teaching at the Universidad de Chapingo in Mexico.

 

Inducted 1999

 

Vladimir Portyanko (postdoc)—moved to Univ. of Minnesota to work as Research Associate in the Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, then to the Dep. of Botany.

 

Chuck Kremer (grad student) —graduated from Iowa State U. in June, 1999 with M.S. in Genetics. Now works in the DNA lab at the Mayo Clinic, Rocherster, MN.

 

Inducted 1998

 

Hoi Sio-Wai (grad student) —graduated from Iowa State U. with MS in Plant Breeding in June 1998.  Now works for Monsanto Co, St. Louis, MO.